A number of Chinese tourists embarrassed themselves recently on a group trip to Southeast Taiwan’s scenic spot of Sansiantai, when they attempted to defy an official notice warning visitors not to remove the natural scenery.A local inn owner posted an eyewitness account to Facebook last week detailing the actions of one dutiful Taiwanese tour guide, who prevented the mainland tourists from snatching up handfuls of precious beach pebbles as souvenirs, according to Apple Daily.The tourists tried their best to protest, but the tour guide threatened to report them to the authorities and thus won the battle.Taiwanese netizens have since praised the gutsy tour guide for taking no shit from rude visitors from across the strait. Last year, one town in southwestern Taiwan threatened to completely seal itself off if the number of tourists from the mainland was not reduced. This is all happening just as cross-strait relations are reaching a whole new level of cordiality.We’ll see if this incident makes Shanghaiist’s top 10 “most embarrassing Chinese tourists” list at the end of the year. Still a lot of time to go.By Pinky Latt